A New Beginning
by PhoebeSnow
Summary: Finn and Rey spend the night in the old Skywalker home on Tatooine and Finn finally tells her how he truly feels about her.


**A/N: This story takes place a week after TROS, but forget the disrespect towards Finnrey and that nasty reylo kiss - gag - because it never happened in this story. Rey is also Luke's daughter in all of my Finnrey fics - unless otherwise stated - because that's obviously what was hinted at in TFA, so I'm keeping it as canon.**

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"So General Hux was the spy?" Rey looked at Finn with an incredulous expression on her face. "I wasn't expecting that."

"Me neither, but it makes sense because Hux and Kylo hated each other and they had a constant rivalry."

"Really?" Her eyes widened and she took a sip of her tea.

"Yeah. Hux was always sneering at Kylo and they'd make these jibes at each other. It was a source of gossip among the officers and stormtroopers. We made sure never to talk about it when they were nearby though. The last thing we wanted was have either one of them overhear and be on the receiving end of their wrath."

"That's understandable. I guess there's always a power struggle in organizations like that."

"Oh, definitely. I bet it happens more when there's corrupt people involved." Finn shook his head and thought for a moment. "This might sound crazy, but...I feel a little bad for Hux."

Rey's eyes bugged out and she stared at Finn incredulously. "You're kidding, right? After everything he's done and how he treated you?"

"Actually, no. I used to hate him, but he'd had a horrible life. His dad was involved with the Empire for years and when the First Order came into power, he was born into that. I never knew Brendol Hux, but it's a known fact that he was abusive towards Armitage. He was an embarrassment since he was born out of an extramarital affair and that may have been why his father treated him badly."

"Sometimes I wonder if he hadn't grown up surrounded by the First Order and been indoctrinated by them, maybe he'd have become a member of the resistance. There have always been defectors, so I think it's possible. Of course, I'm not saying what he experienced gives him a pass for all of the awful things he did or that I like him, but you can't deny that the Empire and the First Order destroyed a lot of people's lives, even the ones who worked for them. It's sad."

Rey knew Finn was right and out of all the people in the galaxy, he had firsthand knowledge of what he was talking about. So much horror and grief had been caused by both the Empire and the First Order. Hating the people involved wouldn't change anything and it was pointless now. They'd all been overthrown, with most of the officers and stormtroopers either died or being forced to surrender. Now was time for healing to begin.

"I never thought about it like that. It's so easy to be angry because of what we've seen and know, but you still have to let it go and move on or you'll never find peace. Maybe we'll always be a little haunted and scarred by what we've experienced, but we have each other and that makes all the difference."

A tiny smile appeared on her face as she looked at Finn. He had grown so much in the past year. When they first met, he'd been afraid of the First Order and wanted to escape from their reach. Despite that, there was always a bit of bravery inside of him that showed itself at the most opportune times.

Now, he was a confident young man who'd been granted the rank of general in the resistance. Many humans and aliens on different worlds had a great deal of respect for him and the tales of his exploits had begun to spread. Finn and Rey had been on Tatooine for one day and already had been greeted happily by several individuals, thanking them for fighting and destroying the First Order.

Of course, they felt bashful whenever people came up to them like that. It was good feeling knowing they played a part to help restore peace to the galaxy, but it was somewhat surreal to know that people think of them as legends on countless worlds.

That's why Rey was grateful for this alone time. Instead of being known as the Jedi who defeated Palpatine and rest of the Sith, she could just be herself. And who better to enjoy being herself with than Finn? They'd been through a lot together and she trusted him more than anyone else in the entire galaxy.

She thought about how he was always concerned about her. Some people might find that stifling and smothering, but she liked it. After many years of living on her own with no one who cared about her, it was a welcome change to be important to someone. Of course, she had Han, Leia and Luke for a while, but they were dead now. The good thing was she still had Finn, Chewbacca, Poe, Lando, BB8, C3PO, R2D2 and others from the resistance.

These people - and droids - may not be related to her by blood, but they were just as special. An adopted family was still a family and even though she wouldn't be able to see them all the time, she grew to appreciate them more and more. A life without friendship and love was certainly **not** a life.

Rey thought of the many times over the year when they could have been injured or even died. Peril was an old sensation and she hoped her life could slow down and maybe she'd be able to find some peace and stability.

She wasn't sure why, but her mind turned back to Paasana. They had started to become swallowed up by the sinking fields of the desert. Frantically, Finn yelled that there was something he wanted to tell her, but their heads disappeared under the sand before he could finish his sentence.

In the back of her mind, she wondered what he meant to say to her. When they fell in the tunnel the Vexis snake had created, she asked Finn about it, but he said he'd tell her when they were alone. That was odd, but she had been distracted, so she didn't press further. Her curiosity was back though and no one else was around, so now he could say what he wished.

"What was it that you wanted to tell me?"

"Hm?"

"Back on Paasana, you said - well, yelled - that there was something you wanted to tell me."

Finn had just finished eating his third nutrition bar and swallowed a mouthful of tea when she spoke. He was surprised that she mentioned it because after everything they'd been through, he wouldn't have expected her to remember. Well, he did say he'd tell her later and they were alone, so now was the best time for him to confess his feelings.

He gently took Rey's hands in his. She glanced down at his fingers and back to his face, but she didn't pull her hands away. Finn was one of few people whom she allowed to touch or be this close to her, so it didn't make her uncomfortable. There were questions in her eyes, but she remained silent and waited for him to talk. Whatever he was going to say was clearly important and she squeezed his hands in encouragement.

A lot of the tension in Finn's shoulders ebbed away when she did that. This was Rey, his best friend, the one person who saw his humanity and changed his life from their first meeting. She cared about him and even if she didn't love him the same way, he knew she wouldn't make him feel bad. Nothing he told her would ruin their friendship.

With this in mind, he sat up straight and looked her in the eyes. "Rey, you're the first person who cared about my well-being. You're my first friend, my _best_ friend. We've had our share of arguments and disagreements, but we always make up in the end."

"You already know that my experience with women is pretty much non-existent and my knowledge about romantic relationships is worse...but for a while, I've been wanting, er, hoping that maybe you'd consider letting our friendship develop into something deeper."

Rey blinked and let out a sharp breath. The look on Finn's face was as heartfelt as it had been a year ago when he told her that he was a stormtrooper. She remembered how he pleaded with her to run away with him. The emotion and yearning in the depths of his eyes made her heart pound.

"A-are you saying..." Her voice cracked and her eyes were wide.

"I love you, Rey." Finn held her hands up to his chest. "I've been crazy about you ever since the day we met on Jaaku. You've made an incredible impact on my life and I feel like I've become a better man because of you. You stole my heart and I don't believe there's anyone else who's worthy of it. Please tell me that I have a chance."

"Finn, I..." Tears filled Rey's eyes as she reached out and hugged him tightly. His confession had touched her deeply. Once he said 'love' she knew what her response would be.

"Yes." The word came out breathily and she shook from the intensity of this moment.

Finn felt his heart give a jolt and he pulled back to look her in the eyes. Her face was wet with tears and she smiled at him, chuckling and wiping at the dampness - it was of no use because more just slid down her cheeks.

"You - you mean it?"

"I do. So, _so_ much. Finn, I don't know anything about relationships either, but you're the most important person in the world to me. This past year has been hard, but one of the things I look forward to every day is seeing your face. Whenever we talk, I feel so happy and safe and I love how gentle you are with me. I know Poe teases you about smothering me, but after the life I've lived, I don't mind it."

She hesitantly touched his cheek and stroked the skin with her thumb, smiling when he trembled under her caress. "I've noticed couples among the resistance and on other planets during our travels. It's made me think about how wonderful it would be to belong to someone like that...to be intimate with them. And every time my thoughts wandered in that direction, I found myself thinking about you."

Rey moved closer, a twinkle in her eyes as she continued. "I want to see where this goes, Finn. I never said it before because it was never the time or place and I didn't know how, but I always knew there was something between us. I'm glad I was right and...I think I've started to fall in love with you."

Finn could hardly believe his ears. Rey had liked him all along? Of course he knew she cared for him as a friend and he had plenty of daydreams about this moment, but to hear the words spoken out loud in reality was a blessing. Instinctively, he slid his hand behind her neck and slanted his lips over hers in a passionate kiss.

She squealed in surprise because she hadn't expected him to do that, but she wasn't going to complain. Her hands moved to touch his biceps and she cocked her head to the side, applying pressure to the kiss. Finn's palms went up to her face and he held her with a tenderness that would've made her swoon if she'd been standing.

Eventually, they had to pull away to catch their breaths and they stared at each other wordlessly. The air had now become charged with a foreign intensity that neither one of them had ever experienced before. It was exciting and scary at the same time.

Rey felt her cheeks heat up. "You're pretty good at that." Her eyes glanced at his plump lips and she felt an strange urge to flick her tongue out and taste him.

_Whoa, where did that come from?_

"So are you." He grinned.

Finn's fingers rested on Rey's hips and she swore that the temperature had gone up by several degrees. Her palms were sweaty and her heart was still pounding. Was this what it was like when you kissed someone you loved? If so, she thought she'd enjoy doing more of it.

Taking the initiative, she pressed her lips to his again and cupped the apple of his cheek. Their chests brushed against each other and she felt a warm sensation rush through her from her head to her toes. She got so caught up in the kiss that she didn't even notice that Finn fell back and she along with him.

Their heads bumped hard and Rey squealed in pain. Finn groaned, still holding her waist securely with one hand as he rubbed his forehead with the other.

"Ow...that smarts."

"I'm sorry, Finn. I guess I got carried away." Rey moved his fingers and pressed her lips to his head affectionately, putting a tinge of force healing in the smooch. "How is that?"

"It feels good," he murmured, looking up at her sheepishly. "You didn't have to do that though."

"Well, I wanted to. You should just thank me instead of making me feel bad for helping you." Rey frowned and looked away.

Wait. That hadn't been his intent! Finn touched her arm to get her to look at him again. When their eyes met, he replied, "I didn't mean it like that, Rey. I'm used to pain, so it's not like a bump on the head would be a big deal."

"Oh." She understood what he meant. He wasn't the most forthcoming about his past as a stormtrooper, but from the few things he confided to her, it had been a very rigid and painful life. Compared to what he experienced with the First Order, hitting her head with his was probably nothing.

"Of course. I just...don't like to see you hurt."

His gaze softened and he stroked her shoulder. "And I don't like to see _you_ hurt, so I guess we're even."

"Sounds good to me." Rey beamed and gave him another hug.

Finn welcomed it, but she didn't move for several minutes and he suspected that she may have fallen asleep on him. "Rey?" He nudged her, but her eyes were closed and her breathing was deep. Chuckling to himself, he picked her up and carried her to the room across from the kitchen.

Earlier, they had inspected the Skywalker home together and this was the biggest bedroom they found. Finn set Rey on the mattress, took off her shoes and pulled the covers up around her. "Goodnight," he whispered and turned to go, but her hand reached out to grab his sleeve.

"Wait. Stay with me, please?"

The young man looked at her, those beautiful green eyes pleading him not to leave her in this room by herself. Finn couldn't say no to her, especially after confessing his feelings tonight. So he nodded and removed his boots and jacket before slipping into the bed with Rey.

This was nothing new for them, sleeping in close proximity. However, being in the same bed was one thing they'd yet to experience until now. Rey was the girl of his dreams and if she wanted him to be near her, he'd do what she wanted.

Finn's eyelids began to droop and sleep slowly took him, but before he fell under its spell, his hand reached out to cover Rey's smaller one. They fell asleep just like that, facing each other with their bodies connected through a meaningful touch.

The twin suns on Tatooine went down and the young couple slept in peace. Now that Finn and Rey had confessed their feelings for each other, their days ahead would surely be even more promising.

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**Stay strong, Finnrey shippers! We haven't let canon elements in TLJ keep us from shipping Finn and Rey and we don't have to let it start now! Please keep writing and making fanart for our peanuts. They need it more than ever! Have a happy new year, guys!💞**


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